Lips and teeth intertwined, saliva exchanged.
Shen An felt that his mind went blank, and all he could feel was the softness on his lips and the slight tremor in his heart.
Yan Chun was his unspeakable hope for many years; his extravagant hopes and desires that could never see the light of day. He was the bones and blood buried deep in his body, which he could not have but could not let go of either.
He had longed for the person in his arms for many years, but never thought he would ever get what he desired.
But at this moment, he was really in his arms.
Shen An knew that he should be careful and gentle, but the string of reason in his mind had snapped long ago. He couldn’t help but exert force, trying to integrate him into his body.
It wasn’t until he tasted blood that he relaxed a little, as if waking up from a dream.
Shen An moved his lips slightly and looked down at him.
Yan Chun’s lips were slightly parted, revealing his fine white teeth and light pink tongue. His lips had reddened and slightly swollen, making Shen An’s eyes darken.
That was what he just kissed.
“Brother, are you okay?” Yan Chun raised his hand and caressed his lips, asking guiltily.
Only then did Shen An feel a stinging pain on his lips. It turned out that the blood was his.
“I’m alright.” Shen An licked the corners of his lips and replied nonchalantly.
Yan Chun couldn’t stand his gaze, so he buried his head in his chest and whispered, “I didn’t mean it. You kissed me so hard I could barely breathe.”
A smile flashed in Shen An’s eyes. It was their first kiss, and it was all instinctive. They didn’t even know how to channel their breathing. He couldn’t be entirely blamed, but…
“It was my fault.” Shen An raised his hand and patted Yan Chun’s head, feeling happy about his mistake.
Yan Chun remained buried in his arms wordlessly.
Yan Chun was really proactive just now, so Shen An felt he must take charge this time.
So he lowered his head and said to Yan Chun, “I have no experience. If I practice a few more times, I won’t make you uncomfortable anymore.”
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw the tips of Yan Chun’s originally white and tender ears turn red instantly.
“Yes.” Yan Chun’s fingers nervously clutched his sleeves, but he still obediently agreed.
Shen An slowed down his breathing, carefully cupped his face, and pressed their lips together again.
That night, Shen An realized that kissing could be the death of him.
–
The second day.
As soon as Yan Chun woke up, he felt dizzy.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
A hangover is indeed inconvenient, Yan Chun thought.
Lf geyyfv tlr tfjv jcv tjv pera rja eq ktfc tf tfjgv j nblmf ogbw yfrlvf tlw, “Gbfr sbeg tfjv tega?”
Tjc Jtec gjlrfv tlr tfjv jcv rjk atja Vtfc Cc tjv jigfjvs vgfrrfv eq, rja yfrlvf atf yfv, tjcvlcu tlw atf afj lc tlr tjcv.
Tjc Jtec jmmfqafv la jcv vgjcx ribkis.
After a cup of tea, he felt much refreshed.
Shen An straightened up a little more, raising his hands to gently rub his temples, while Yan Chun snuggled into his arms, enjoying his service comfortably.
Seeing that it was already late, it would be a shame to stay in bed any longer, so he pulled Yan Chun up and helped him get dressed and wash up.
Just after washing up, Yan Chun raised his head and asked for another kiss before going out with him.
Unexpectedly, as soon as they opened the door, they saw a person standing outside, who seemed to have been waiting for a long time.
Shen An took a closer look and saw that it was King An.
Yan Chun glanced towards him with some panic. Shen An gently squeezed his little finger in reassurance, then took a step forward and saluted as usual.
“Greetings to King An.”
“Father,” Yan Chun also spoke up.
King An remained motionless, as if he had not heard their voices.
King An didn’t speak, so naturally, they didn’t stand up either, staying down bowing.
The atmosphere suddenly became tense.
Shen An had a feeling that King An already knew something.
After a long time, King An slowly turned around, raised his hand to stroke his beard, and said with a smile, “Get up.”
“Yes.” They both responded in unison.
“Chun’er, why did you sleep in Shen An’s room?” King An looked at Yan Chun and asked.
Yan Chun was already feeling panicked, but when his name was suddenly called out, he stumbled in his answer, “Well, last night, I went to drink with my brother, and accidentally drank too much, so I just slept here.”
“Why did you suddenly start drinking?” King An said, then turned around and walked out.
Yan Chun followed behind, and as soon as he said the word “I”, he was interrupted by King An.
“Is it because Shen An is getting married soon? The daughter of the Su family is indeed good. Although Su Shaoqing is only of the fifth rank, he was once the prince’s junior master. He also came from a scholarly family with a neat background. Moreover, Shen An is my sworn son. They are matched as legitimate children, so they can be considered a good match.”
After hearing King An’s words, Yan Chun fell silent.
King An didn’t care and continued, “Shen An is good at martial arts. After getting married, he will go to the military camp to train for a few years. I hope he will be able to protect his family and make contributions to the country like his father.”
Shen An, “Your Majesty, I…”
“You woke up so late, you haven’t eaten yet. I just happen to be having breakfast, come along.” King An said, striding towards the dining room.
The two followed closely behind.
Because of King An’s attitude, Shen An didn’t even know how to eat.
Since they were already in love with each other, he naturally would not marry anyone else. He tried to find opportunities to explain several times, but King An subtly pushed him away.
After breakfast, King An said he was going to test his schoolwork and took Yan Chun back to Mingzhe Hall.
For a period of time after that, King An would be looking for Yan Chun every day, whether it was poetry practice or banquets.
As for Shen An, King An had already asked the Su family for their daughter’s hand in marriage.
Shen An knew that there was no possibility of breaking off the engagement once it was accepted, so he disregarded everything else and paid a visit to King An early in the morning.
But he was told that King An had serious business to discuss today and it was not convenient for him to see anyone.
Shen An did not leave, but said lightly, “When the king is free, please inform me.”
The boy sighed, looked around, then whispered, “Young Master Shen, you’d better go back. The king does not want to see you right now.”
Shen An didn’t move and just replied, “I’ll wait.”
The boy was helpless and couldn’t persuade him anymore, so he turned around and left.
The sun set and the long clouds got darker.
Shen An had been waiting at the door for a whole day. Finally, the boy came over and called him in.
Shen An raised his legs to walk. They were sore and numb from standing for too long. He stretched and relaxed it for a moment before following the latter inside.
As soon as they entered the main hall, they saw King An sitting on the chair, his head lowered, taking a sip of the tea in his hand.
Seeing him come in, he closed the tea lid and placed the cup heavily on the table.
“What do you want from me?” King An asked calmly.
Shen An wordlessly knelt down.
As if he had a premonition, King An motioned to all the maids and servants around him and said, “You all, leave.”
“Yes.”
The surrounding servants filed out and closed the door considerately.
“Speak.”
Shen An respectfully bowed to King An thrice, and then said, “Your Majesty, please cancel my engagement with the Su family.”
“Why?” King An stood up and turned his back to him. His voice was calm and no emotions could be detected.
“I am merely a commoner who is relying on the king to achieve his current status. I have crude qualifications and no fame. I am really not worthy of the legitimate daughter of the Su family.”
“Ha.” King An suddenly chuckled and turned around slowly, his expression cold, his eyes unsmiling.
“If you are not worthy of the daughter of the Su family, how can you be worthy of my Chun’er?”
Hearing this, Shen An sighed. As expected, King An already knew.
He knelt down and bowed his head deeply. He remained silent for a long time, and then spoke, enunciating each word, “I do not deserve him, and I do not dare to think about it either. I merely want to be a slave and protect the prince for the rest of his life.”
“A slave?” King An said, walking over, and stopped in front of him. He stretched out his hand to lift his chin, forcing him to look at him.
“What kind of slave sleeps with his master? Shen An, enlighten me!”
King An’s eyes were full of rage, almost engulfing him.
Seeing that he was silent, King An pushed him away and continued, “Shen An, I suppose I treated you well. When the General’s mansion fell, I protected you with all my strength and brought you back to my palace. As an adopted son, I even let Chun’er call you brother, and found a master to teach you martial arts. And then? Is this how you repay me? I don’t have many children, I only have a child like Chun’er. Do you plan to end my reign in this palace by severing my bloodline?”
Shen An bowed his head, and said with a painful tone, “An doesn’t dare.”
“You don’t dare? Of course you don’t dare! My son, Chun’er, is the top talent chosen by the emperor today, holding a bright future, I cannot let you ruin him. I do not want to hold you accountable for what you did that night, but from now on, please do not meet again. I will prepare for your marriage to the Su family as soon as possible, and the wedding will be completed next month at the latest. I have purchased a new residence for you on West Street. You can move there after the wedding.”
After King An finished speaking, he flicked his sleeves and turned away, as if he didn’t want to spare another look at him.
Shen An’s face turned pale, and he knelt forward and promised, “Your Majesty, I will never do anything inappropriate with the Crown Prince again. I just request…”
“Come here!” King An shouted at the door.
The door was pushed open and the boy waiting outside entered.
“Take him out and lock him in his house. He is not allowed to go out until the wedding.”
“Yes.”
The boy went to grab Shen An.
But he was no match for him, and Shen An soon broke away from him.
Upon seeing this, King An sneered, “Shen An, are you going to rebel?”
Shen An didn’t respond, but knelt on the ground and kowtowed, heavily knocking his head on the floor, “I beg the King to cancel the engagement.”
King An flew into a rage, and the fingers pointing at him were trembling slightly, “Alright, alright, if you want to do it, then go ahead!”
After that, he strode out.
Shen An was left kneeling there alone, kowtowing over and over again until blood dripped from his forehead.
Thanks for the chapter, difficult situation for Shen An….. 🙁